Data / Rankings / Unemployed people / Cities in Massachusetts

Cities in Massachusetts by unemployed people

Boston, MA had the highest unemployed people of 58 cities in 2020, at 37,977. Palmer Town, MA had the lowest, at 658. The median was 2,532. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

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Highest37,977Boston, MA
Lowest658Palmer Town, MA
Median2,53258 cities

All cities, 2020

Boston, MA: 37,977 personsBoston, MA37,977Worcester, MA: 10,302 personsWorcester, MA10,302Springfield, MA: 9,458 personsSpringfield, MA9,458Lawrence, MA: 6,968 personsLawrence, MA6,968Brockton, MA: 6,915 personsBrockton, MA6,915Quincy, MA: 6,588 personsQuincy, MA6,588New Bedford, MA: 6,582 personsNew Bedford, MA6,582Lynn, MA: 6,458 personsLynn, MA6,458Lowell, MA: 6,149 personsLowell, MA6,149Fall River, MA: 5,568 personsFall River, MA5,568Revere, MA: 4,420 personsRevere, MA4,420Malden, MA: 4,160 personsMalden, MA4,160Haverhill, MA: 3,822 personsHaverhill, MA3,822Taunton, MA: 3,667 personsTaunton, MA3,667Cambridge, MA: 3,633 personsCambridge, MA3,633Somerville, MA: 3,536 personsSomerville, MA3,536Weymouth Town, MA: 3,244 personsWeymouth Town, MA3,244Framingham, MA: 3,179 personsFramingham, MA3,179Everett, MA: 3,090 personsEverett, MA3,090Chicopee, MA: 3,053 personsChicopee, MA3,053Methuen, MA: 3,000 personsMethuen, MA3,000Peabody, MA: 2,975 personsPeabody, MA2,975Newton, MA: 2,865 personsNewton, MA2,865Medford, MA: 2,804 personsMedford, MA2,804Waltham, MA: 2,759 personsWaltham, MA2,759Chelsea, MA: 2,667 personsChelsea, MA2,667Salem, MA: 2,589 personsSalem, MA2,589Barnstable Town, MA: 2,573 personsBarnstable Town, MA2,573Attleboro, MA: 2,534 personsAttleboro, MA2,534Fitchburg, MA: 2,529 personsFitchburg, MA2,529Randolph Town, MA: 2,396 personsRandolph Town, MA2,396Leominster, MA: 2,379 personsLeominster, MA2,379Pittsfield, MA: 2,352 personsPittsfield, MA2,352Holyoke, MA: 2,173 personsHolyoke, MA2,173Woburn, MA: 2,090 personsWoburn, MA2,090Braintree Town, MA: 2,051 personsBraintree Town, MA2,051Marlborough, MA: 1,990 personsMarlborough, MA1,990Beverly, MA: 1,911 personsBeverly, MA1,911Westfield, MA: 1,812 personsWestfield, MA1,812Gloucester, MA: 1,622 personsGloucester, MA1,622Watertown, MA: 1,613 personsWatertown, MA1,613North Attleborough Town, MA: 1,554 personsNorth Attleborough Town, MA1,554West Springfield Town, MA: 1,523 personsWest Springfield Town, MA1,523Franklin Town, MA: 1,462 personsFranklin Town, MA1,462Agawam Town, MA: 1,403 personsAgawam Town, MA1,403Bridgewater Town, MA: 1,332 personsBridgewater Town, MA1,332Melrose, MA: 1,226 personsMelrose, MA1,226Northampton, MA: 1,185 personsNorthampton, MA1,185Winthrop Town, MA: 1,161 personsWinthrop Town, MA1,161Gardner, MA: 1,089 personsGardner, MA1,089Southbridge Town, MA: 1,056 personsSouthbridge Town, MA1,056Amherst Town, MA: 905 personsAmherst Town, MA905Amesbury, MA: 850 personsAmesbury, MA850Greenfield, MA: 828 personsGreenfield, MA828Easthampton, MA: 804 personsEasthampton, MA804Newburyport, MA: 697 personsNewburyport, MA697North Adams, MA: 659 personsNorth Adams, MA659Palmer Town, MA: 658 personsPalmer Town, MA658Boston, MA: 37,977 personsBoston, MA37,977Worcester, MA: 10,302 personsWorcester, MA10,302Springfield, MA: 9,458 personsSpringfield, MA9,458Lawrence, MA: 6,968 personsLawrence, MA6,968Brockton, MA: 6,915 personsBrockton, MA6,915Quincy, MA: 6,588 personsQuincy, MA6,588New Bedford, MA: 6,582 personsNew Bedford, MA6,582Lynn, MA: 6,458 personsLynn, MA6,458Lowell, MA: 6,149 personsLowell, MA6,149Fall River, MA: 5,568 personsFall River, MA5,568Revere, MA: 4,420 personsRevere, MA4,420Malden, MA: 4,160 personsMalden, MA4,160Haverhill, MA: 3,822 personsHaverhill, MA3,822Taunton, MA: 3,667 personsTaunton, MA3,667Cambridge, MA: 3,633 personsCambridge, MA3,633Somerville, MA: 3,536 personsSomerville, MA3,536Weymouth Town, MA: 3,244 personsWeymouth Town, MA3,244Framingham, MA: 3,179 personsFramingham, MA3,179Everett, MA: 3,090 personsEverett, MA3,090Chicopee, MA: 3,053 personsChicopee, MA3,053Methuen, MA: 3,000 personsMethuen, MA3,000Peabody, MA: 2,975 personsPeabody, MA2,975Newton, MA: 2,865 personsNewton, MA2,865Medford, MA: 2,804 personsMedford, MA2,804Waltham, MA: 2,759 personsWaltham, MA2,759Chelsea, MA: 2,667 personsChelsea, MA2,667Salem, MA: 2,589 personsSalem, MA2,589Barnstable Town, MA: 2,573 personsBarnstable Town, MA2,573Attleboro, MA: 2,534 personsAttleboro, MA2,534Fitchburg, MA: 2,529 personsFitchburg, MA2,529Randolph Town, MA: 2,396 personsRandolph Town, MA2,396Leominster, MA: 2,379 personsLeominster, MA2,379Pittsfield, MA: 2,352 personsPittsfield, MA2,352Holyoke, MA: 2,173 personsHolyoke, MA2,173Woburn, MA: 2,090 personsWoburn, MA2,090Braintree Town, MA: 2,051 personsBraintree Town, MA2,051Marlborough, MA: 1,990 personsMarlborough, MA1,990Beverly, MA: 1,911 personsBeverly, MA1,911Westfield, MA: 1,812 personsWestfield, MA1,812Gloucester, MA: 1,622 personsGloucester, MA1,622Watertown, MA: 1,613 personsWatertown, MA1,613North Attleborough Town, MA: 1,554 personsNorth Attleborough Town, MA1,554West Springfield Town, MA: 1,523 personsWest Springfield Town, MA1,523Franklin Town, MA: 1,462 personsFranklin Town, MA1,462Agawam Town, MA: 1,403 personsAgawam Town, MA1,403Bridgewater Town, MA: 1,332 personsBridgewater Town, MA1,332Melrose, MA: 1,226 personsMelrose, MA1,226Northampton, MA: 1,185 personsNorthampton, MA1,185Winthrop Town, MA: 1,161 personsWinthrop Town, MA1,161Gardner, MA: 1,089 personsGardner, MA1,089Southbridge Town, MA: 1,056 personsSouthbridge Town, MA1,056Amherst Town, MA: 905 personsAmherst Town, MA905Amesbury, MA: 850 personsAmesbury, MA850Greenfield, MA: 828 personsGreenfield, MA828Easthampton, MA: 804 personsEasthampton, MA804Newburyport, MA: 697 personsNewburyport, MA697North Adams, MA: 659 personsNorth Adams, MA659Palmer Town, MA: 658 personsPalmer Town, MA658
persons. Source: BLS, Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: unemployment (measure 04), annual average. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankCities2020
persons		Change on 2019
1Boston, MA37,977+252.3%
2Worcester, MA10,302+193.1%
3Springfield, MA9,458+147.5%
4Lawrence, MA6,968+246%
5Brockton, MA6,915+248.4%
6Quincy, MA6,588+317.5%
7New Bedford, MA6,582+154.6%
8Lynn, MA6,458+288.1%
9Lowell, MA6,149+195.3%
10Fall River, MA5,568+142.9%
11Revere, MA4,420+349.2%
12Malden, MA4,160+334.2%
13Haverhill, MA3,822+210.2%
14Taunton, MA3,667+212.9%
15Cambridge, MA3,633+166.9%
16Somerville, MA3,536+233.6%
17Weymouth Town, MA3,244+222.5%
18Framingham, MA3,179+226.1%
19Everett, MA3,090+331%
20Chicopee, MA3,053+157%
21Methuen, MA3,000+213.2%
22Peabody, MA2,975+259.7%
23Newton, MA2,865+171.8%
24Medford, MA2,804+240.3%
25Waltham, MA2,759+193.8%
26Chelsea, MA2,667+328.8%
27Salem, MA2,589+238%
28Barnstable Town, MA2,573+161.7%
29Attleboro, MA2,534+192.6%
30Fitchburg, MA2,529+193%
31Randolph Town, MA2,396+276.7%
32Leominster, MA2,379+190.8%
33Pittsfield, MA2,352+167.6%
34Holyoke, MA2,173+155.6%
35Woburn, MA2,090+238.2%
36Braintree Town, MA2,051+263.7%
37Marlborough, MA1,990+192.6%
38Beverly, MA1,911+202.4%
39Westfield, MA1,812+133.5%
40Gloucester, MA1,622+153.8%
41Watertown, MA1,613+239.6%
42North Attleborough Town, MA1,554+212%
43West Springfield Town, MA1,523+175.9%
44Franklin Town, MA1,462+197.8%
45Agawam Town, MA1,403+167.2%
46Bridgewater Town, MA1,332+194.7%
47Melrose, MA1,226+208.8%
48Northampton, MA1,185+200%
49Winthrop Town, MA1,161+267.4%
50Gardner, MA1,089+167.6%
51Southbridge Town, MA1,056+170.8%
52Amherst Town, MA905+69.2%
53Amesbury, MA850+211.4%
54Greenfield, MA828+187.5%
55Easthampton, MA804+193.4%
56Newburyport, MA697+173.3%
57North Adams, MA659+143.2%
58Palmer Town, MA658+122.3%

Other periods

About this ranking

Residents with no job who were available for work and had looked for work in the previous four weeks, or were waiting to be recalled from a layoff, annual average.

More on how it is measured
  • People aged 16 and over by place of residence, from the Local Area Unemployment Statistics (LAUS) program of the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
  • Active-duty military personnel and people living in institutions are excluded.

United States cities only for now. The survey definition, not a count of benefit claimants. BLS estimates cities by splitting county estimates with Census Bureau employment and population data and unemployment insurance claims, so city figures are less precise than state ones. BLS publishes cities of 25,000 or more, and smaller cities in New England.

Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the cities are compared on one definition. Equal values share a rank.

How to cite

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: unemployment (measure 04), annual average. https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU20-24. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Citation styles

The publisher is the author. Invokely is named only as the place the figures were read, where a style asks for it.

APA 7

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. (2026). Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: unemployment (measure 04), annual average (Cities in Massachusetts by unemployed people, 2020) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU20-24

MLA 9

Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: unemployment (measure 04), annual average, Cities in Massachusetts by unemployed people, 2020. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 30 Sept. 2026, https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU20-24. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/unemployed-people/massachusetts-cities?period=2020. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. 2026. Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: unemployment (measure 04), annual average. Cities in Massachusetts by unemployed people, 2020. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU20-24. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/unemployed-people/massachusetts-cities?period=2020.

Harvard

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (2026) Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: unemployment (measure 04), annual average, Cities in Massachusetts by unemployed people, 2020 [Dataset]. Available at: https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU20-24, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/unemployed-people/massachusetts-cities?period=2020 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{bureau_cities_in_massachusetts_by_2020,
  author = {{U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics}},
  title = {{Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: unemployment (measure 04), annual average: Cities in Massachusetts by unemployed people, 2020}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU20-24},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/unemployed-people/massachusetts-cities?period=2020. Publisher attribution: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: unemployment (measure 04), annual average. https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU20-24. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
TI  - Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: unemployment (measure 04), annual average: Cities in Massachusetts by unemployed people, 2020
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/09/30
PB  - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU20-24
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/unemployed-people/massachusetts-cities?period=2020
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/unemployed-people/massachusetts-cities?period=2020.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: unemployment (measure 04), annual average. https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU20-24. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -
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Rank Cities in Massachusetts by unemployed people using official data, and cite the source.
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Questions

Which city has the highest unemployed people?

Boston, MA, with 37,977 in 2020, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which city has the lowest unemployed people?

Palmer Town, MA, with 658 in 2020.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: unemployment (measure 04), annual average. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Unemployed people: other rankings

Cities in Massachusetts: more rankings